25 Army Suicides Last Month, 51 Total Deaths in Afghanistan

The Army on Friday reported a sharp spike in suicides during April among active-duty troops. The Army says the deaths of 16 active-duty soldiers during April are being investigated as possible suicides. That number was seven in March and eight in February.

The Army release did not include any possible explanation for the scary increase in April. The number for April, 16 suicides, does not include another nine potential suicides among reserve troops not currently on active duty.

That’s 25 soldiers dead from suicide last month, nearly one every day. To put that number in a shocking perspective, there were 51 deaths in Afghanistan last month from all the services combined, though some of those 51 deaths may come from the suicide numbers.